JVP Guaranteed Rajapaksa’s Victory in 2005 Ranil-Mahinda: First Presidential Debate that Never Was

CBK’s Unconstitutional Attempt at Extension

It was reported that Chief Justice Sarath N. Silva secretly administered the oath of office to President Kumaratunga for a second time in August 2000. CBK initially took oaths on December 22, 1999. The statement unsettled the UNP, prompting strategic discussions. They challenged the claim that the President could remain in office until 2006.

The presidential election to select Sri Lanka’s fifth president occurred on November 17, 2005. There was a debate when President Kumaratunga argued that her term ended in 2006 because she was sworn in for a second time in 2000. It was brought before the Supreme Court. On August 26, 2005, the Supreme Court decided that it should take place in 2005. 

Nominations for the Presidential Election were opened on 7th October, 2005. Rajapaksa needed to re-establish the alliance with the Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna that had been formed during the 2004 parliamentary elections. The JVP, with a robust support base at the village level and 41 parliamentary seats could garner 300,000 to 400,000 votes for Mahinda in the 2005 Presidential election. In return for their support, he agreed to reject federalism and renegotiate the ceasefire with the LTTE. Consequently, the JVP endorsed him. President Kumaratunga was furious upon learning about this new alliance, as the JVP had previously left her government due to disagreements over P-TOMS [Post-Tsunami Operational Management Structure]. The JVP had held key cabinet portfolios in her government, including Agriculture, Land Irrigation, and Livestock, which were all managed by Anura Kumara Dissanayake.

Accusations

Mahinda Rajapaksa, the UPFA candidate, received a strongly worded letter from President Kumaratunga. He did not respond immediately to her accusations and refrained from addressing the issue in his speeches. Consequently, Kumaratunga left for New York to attend the United Nations General Assembly sessions without receiving any answers to the queries she had raised before her departure, leaving the Rajapaksas and the JVP to handle the campaign. There were concerns that she aimed to disrupt Rajapaksa’s candidacy.

The JVP leadership campaigned jointly for Mahinda alongside Chief Campaign Manager Basil Rajapaksa, marking the beginning of the Rajapaksa regime.

Parts of the letter written by President Chandrika Bandaranaike Kumaratunga were leaked to the media. The English translation, titled “Signing of the Agreement with the JVP,” included the following excerpt:
“I have learned from our party leaders that you have undertaken this action. Although you invited our ministers and MPs through phone calls, you did not inform me of such a significant undertaking. The Central Committee, which should be involved in making such decisions, was also not informed…. by  agreeing with the JVP, you have overridden the P-TOMS agreement, which was presented to Parliament after receiving unanimous approval from the Cabinet, district and electoral organizers, and the Central Committee. How can you now say that this agreement is unacceptable after it was presented to Parliament with your approval? After sending out the invitations, you attempted to call me, presumably to inform me about the signing; this is absurd...”

Piece of cake

“Our Government has decided that devolution of power is the only solution as there is no solution which has been achieved in the world as proposed in your agreement. … if you meet Prabhakaran you may only have a piece of cake.”  Rajapakse supporters were distressed by the grouping of MPs for seminars and overseas tours during the election period, perceived as an effort to undermine Rajapakse’s campaign. Apart from a select few officials, all MPs and state media personnel were handpicked by Kumaratunga. Who could object to the millions spent from taxpayers’ money when this would be her final expedition to the UN as President of Sri Lanka? Just a day before Kumaratunga’s letter reached Temple Trees, Basil Rajapaksa, the brother of Prime Minister Rajapaksa, visited an old friend, Anura Bandaranaike, at Isurupaya. During their friendly conversation, Basil appealed for Anura’s cooperation. 

Anura Bandaranaike openly criticized the Rajapaksas during a public meeting in Attanagalla, his speech laced with insinuation. He stated, “We haven’t robbed or killed our people. There is no blood on our hands. That is how we have done politics.” Rajapaksa’s campaigners faced difficulties organising meetings in the Gampaha district, as party stalwarts there sought Anura’s approval. Similarly, organizing the Kandy district posed challenges for Rajapaksa’s campaign staff, with complaints about Finance Minister Sarath Amunugama’s lack of cooperation. Despite reports suggesting a potential return to the United National Party due to discomfort with Rajapaksa and his agreements with the JVP and the JHU, Amunugama denied such intentions. 

As per directives issued by the LTTE, the Tamil population in the North East refrained from participating in the Election. Residents of the Jaffna district, who typically vote for the UNP in presidential elections, were compelled to abstain from voting.

Presidential Debate -1: That Never Was 

The campaign team of Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa was deliberating on an invitation from both state and private television channels to partake in a debate with the main opposing candidate, Opposition Leader Ranil Wickremesinghe. Basil Rajapaksa, Mahinda’s Campaign Manager, told the media that they were considering participation in the debate but were currently assessing televised debates between presidential candidates in other nations to establish the conditions for such an event. Rupavahini, Independent Television Network, Swaranawahini, and MTV had invited both candidates to participate in the debate. 

Wickremesinghe agreed to participate in the debate and chose ‘Sirasa’ managed by MTV since he was initially invited by them. However, Rajapaksa delayed, stating they needed to select one channel or agree to participate in all channels based on the Committee’s recommendations. Wickremesinghe suggested the most practical approach would be to broadcast the debate on all channels rather than holding separate debates for each. Tissa Attanayaka, UNP Assistant Secretary, mentioned that Ranil was willing to participate in a debate centered on the economy and the peace process with the LTTE. This approach would allow Ranil to depict Mahinda Rajapaksa as a nationalist while positioning himself as a peacemaker. Given Mahinda’s tendency to represent the Sinhalese-Buddhist community and Wickremesinghe’s portrayal as non-racist, the debate was to focus on themes such as ‘nationalism’ or ‘federalism.’

The UNP wanted Ranjith Abeysuriya as the moderator, while the UPFA proposed former Presidential Secretary K. H. J. Wijedasa. Rajapaksa wanted the debate to be handled only by the state-owned Rupavahini Corporation, but the UNP preferred both state and private TV channels. Rajapaksa’s proposals were deemed illogical and unworkable for a debate. Mahinda, like Sajith, lacked confidence in his economic knowledge, competence, and debating abilities. Consequently, the highly anticipated debate between the two main presidential candidates, Mahinda Rajapaksa and Ranil Wickremesinghe was called off after both sides failed to agree on the ground rules and the moderator.

The JVP primarily, with the LTTE playing a smaller role, contributed to the Rajapaksas’ victory by 185,000 votes in 2005.

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